Innholdsfortegnelse for February 2022 i VolksWorld

Surprise surprise Hello VolksWorld, In 1984, my father purchased a VW for $100 and the car was his daily commuter for the next 30-odd years. When bought, it was white but dad then sprayed it yellow. However, what started as a windscreen replacement eventually turned into a full restoration. After winning numerous car show awards, he was offered a significant sum of money for the car and so sold it, but immediately regretted the decision. Since then, the car has changed hands four times and my father has always kept track of its location, in the hope that he might buy it back one day. I recently found out that the car was to be sold by auction, and was able to make contact with the owner. I explained the…

The California Look truly blossomed during the second half of the 1970s, due in no small part to the promotion it received in Hot VWs magazine after that famous February ’75 issue. A southern Californian teenager called Mark Ramirez witnessed the changes in the scene first hand, as he lived right in the heart of where the Look originated. Furthermore, his dad, Carlos, loved cars and owned a Volkswagen shop in the city of Whittier. Having started to occasionally work with his father in 1975, he longed to cruise in his own Bug, inspired by the modified VWs he saw prowling his neighbourhood. Between them, they finished a ’59 project car before Mark had even gained his driving license at age 16. It adopted various early California Look traits, such…

“The second book is a more personal view of the California VW scene” “just about the best collection of period reference material around” I thought we’d head down a little siding this month and into the world of literature. Cal Look literature of course. It was on 18 October 1994 that ex-VolksWorld Editor, Keith Seume, signed a contract with Charles Herridge of Devon’s Bay View Books to come up with 35,000 words, 75 colour transparencies and 125 black and white photographs for a book about the California Look. He had until 14 January 1995 to submit it. Although the internet had been in existence for over a decade by then, it wasn’t used in the way it is now, so he really had his work cut out amassing the material…

“My dad (or mum) had one when I was growing up,” must be one of the most common quotes to appear in VolksWorld since its inception in 1987. The same subconscious influence probably caused the vast majority of us to hanker after a VW as a first car, whether you’re a child of the ’60s, ’70s, ’80s or ’90s. Yep, our folks definitely play a pivotal part in influencing our future choices, automotive and beyond. It doesn’t matter if you’re a first-time owner, or a globally renowned VW ‘name’, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree. In the case of Dave ‘Pip’ Pipoly, well known in these pages for the numerous Compound-built air-cooled masterclasses in recent years, that is most certainly the case, although in this instance there’s an…

Sponsored by We are delighted to announce that The VolksWorld Show will be happening in 2022, and here’s some really exciting news. In association with the UK Cal Look Register, we’re busy gathering together a very special collection of some of the best California Look cars in the UK just for the event. We’re on track to showcase some topnotch debuts, which will sit alongside iconic survivors from the heyday of the ‘Look, along with a number of renowned show ‘n’ go favourites. They’ll all be displayed togethe within the Brasserie at Sandown Park. We’ve chosen the Brasserie because the relaxed atmosphere of the exclusive bar area makes it the perfect place to take your time and really appreciate this unique opportunity. The Brasserie display is sponsored by Heritage Parts…

This isn’t the first car Joel Johnson has had in VolksWorld, though it is his first full blown feature. Many years ago, his Cal Look ’67 was a Readers’ ride, but was then sold to fund his tenure at university. Even that was a good while ago now. That ’67 was his pride and joy at the time but, not long after it was in the magazine, Joel decided his life wasn’t really going anywhere and that he needed to do something about it. He didn’t completely leave the scene behind, always keeping an interest and owning a Mk1 Golf that’s been on the back burner for years. “I always felt an Oval Window was the pinnacle of Beetle ownership, though it’s more the windscreen shape and front of the…

“what makes owning this car so much fun for me is the community I’ve found all over the world that appreciate it” To many hardcore Cal Look fans, there’s only one model that is perfect for the Look. A ’67 Beetle. Ideally, a US-spec ’67 with upright headlights. And for Rob Hogg, that moment of clarity came when he picked up the March 1992 issue of VolksWorld with Hector Bonilla’s original Cal Look ’67 in as a kid. If you’re unfamiliar with Hector’s ’67, Google ‘Hector Bonilla DKP’ and you’ll find a pic or two. When his car was featured in VolksWorld, alongside another DKP member, Gary Shubrook’s, Oval, it was at a time when pastel-coloured cars abounded in the UK. Hector’s car was very different. It was a tough…

“we surmised it was either an original car, or a very authentic recreation” In the mid-1970s in California, a new style of modified VW was emerging on the streets. It remained largely unknown to many outside California for decades but, once the lid of the box was opened, the Look spread worldwide like wild fire. These days, we’re sure hardcore Cal Look fans can quickly recall a good number of the better known Bugs from that era, but the number of similarly-styled Ghias can probably be counted on the fingers of one hand. Therefore, when we saw this Ghia turn up at a show in Europe, we were suitably intrigued. Without the owner around to speak to, we surmised it was either an original car, or a very authentic recreation.…

MARCH The VolksWorld Show Date: 19-20 March 2022 Location: Sandown Park Racecourse, Esher, Surrey KT10 9AJ Contact: www.volksworld.com MAY Stanford Hall Date: 1 May Location: Stanford Hall, Lutterworth, Leicestershire LE17 6DH Contact: www.stanfordhallvw.com JUNE Hessisch Oldendorf (vintage meet) Date: 24-26 June Location: 31840 Hessisch Oldendorf, Germany Contact: www.uraltkaefer.de JULY European Bug-In #9 Date: 1-3 July Location: Rue du Grand Prix des Frontieres, B6460 Chimay, Belgium Contact: www.europeanbugin.com NB: Please be aware all dates and venues are subject to change, so always check the website and / or contact the organiser before leaving home. PLANNING AN EVENT? If you’ve got a gathering this year, tell us about it via volksworld.ed@kelsey.co.uk…

If there’s one question guaranteed to start a heated discussion, it’s, ‘What is a California Look VW?’ Some people will give you an instant answer. It’ll almost certainly involve a dropped front end, and should involve a hot motor, but after that opinions start to differ. One-piece windows? T-bars? De-chromed? Lucas indicators? Colours? Then you get into what type of wheels, interior and dash treatments, exhausts, even what year of car and vehicle type is suitable. Here comes that heated discussion… In the hope of clearing matters up, people often refer to the illustration by Burly Burlile and Lane Evans in the February 1975 issue of Hot VWs magazine as the definitive guide to Cal Look ‘rules’, but even that was slightly at odds with what was happening at the…

“That options list includes code M129, denoting the presence of side trim” For some reason, the Belgians and the Dutch love a British VW event. If you’ve ever had the absolute pleasure of partying with these guys at a show, then you’ll know just how much of a good time they have. Dries Van Hamme, resident of Londerzeel, Belgium, and owner of this 1967 Cal Looker is no different. He prides himself on being a member of the Flatline Lowriders who, incidentally, picked up the Best Club award at the recent Airmighty Show in The Netherlands. If you were at Bus Fest 2018, you would have seen and heard him running things from the Kweenony Samba party Bus as his alter ego, DJ FaTd. So, he’s a pretty cool cat…